Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
LINDY
The first thing Lindy was going to do when the curse was broken was ensure she never had to look at a nettle again. She closed her eyes for a second in a silent cry of pain as she stripped another stem, breathing through the painful, itching burn.
It’s only temporary. I just have to harvest enough fibers to finish the last shirt, and then I’ll spend the rest of my life without stepping within six feet of a nettle plant.
Beside her, Atlas was working with an impressive efficiency, sweeping his large hands down the stem and removing all of the leaves in one smooth movement.
He refused to listen to her protests, for which she was secretly relieved.
With their combined efforts, she was nearly a day ahead of her initial estimates.
The job was still just as painful and miserable as it had been before, but having Atlas beside her, quiet and steady and as reliable as the mountain he lived on, somehow made it more bearable.
He looked over, caught her watching him, and gave her a soft smile that melted her insides.
She looked away quickly, her heart pounding in her chest and the pain in her hands nearly forgotten.
Her emotions were unfamiliar and frightening, as if she’d fallen from the highest tower and were hurtling towards sharp rocks below without knowing if anyone would catch her.
Her breaths came too quickly; she couldn’t fill her lungs.
Something hard pinched her upper arm, drawing her out of her panicked spiral.
Lindy looked over to find that Corbin had settled himself beside her and that his beak was a condemning distance from her elbow.
He fixed her with a hard stare, one that was far too intelligent to belong to a bird, then nudged her with his beak.
Hesitantly, Lindy held out a hand. Corbin stretched out his neck and bumped the top of his head against it, and with shaking fingers, she ran her hand down the length of his neck and back. In what was becoming a distressingly normal habit, her eyes filled with tears.
The moment was broken as a distressed call carried through the air. “Lindy!”
Lindy’s head snapped toward the tree line at the sound of Elise’s voice, and Corbin was on his feet immediately, half flying, half running as the lady-in-waiting burst into sight.
Her hair was disheveled and her skirts ripped and muddied, and she gasped for panting breaths as she leaned over onto her knees.
Atlas joined her as she jumped to her feet, the nettles forgotten for the moment. She ran to her friend.
Elise looked up and let out a yelp of terror. Her wide eyes were trained on Atlas, and she grabbed Lindy’s arm, attempting to pull her into the trees.
Lindy planted her feet and shook her head vehemently.
She shook herself free from Elise’s trembling grip and reached behind her for Atlas’s hand.
His large fingers completely covered hers, and he gave her a supportive, comforting squeeze as he stood just behind her shoulder.
Lindy looked up at him, tilting her head in Elise’s direction and willing him to understand that he should introduce himself.
He did. “You must be Elise. I’m Atlas.”
Elise pulled her frightened stare away from him long enough to dart her eyes to Lindy, as if seeking confirmation. Lindy nodded.
“She can’t speak until the sun goes down,” Atlas explained. “It’s part of breaking the curse.”
As if on cue, Corbin flapped his wings, demanding attention. Elise looked down at him and immediately teared up. “Is that…?” Her voice cracked helplessly.
Lindy nodded again, and Elise’s knees buckled under her as she sank to the ground, throwing her arms around the swan. Corbin rested his head on her shoulder. “I’m still angry with you,” Elise whispered brokenly. “But I’m glad you’re alright.”
Lindy looked away, intending to give them a moment of privacy, only to find that the other princes had crowded around them, watching with solemn eyes.
Elise swiped the back of her hands over her eyes.
“I don’t know what to do, Lindy. Haldrick is out of control.
He’s convinced most of the court that the princes are dead, and he’s put himself in charge until the investigation is over.
No one is willing to challenge him on it for fear of being thrown in jail themselves. ”
Atlas muttered some choice words under his breath.
“And now.” Elise drew in a ragged, hiccuping breath. “Now he’s decided that I must have had something to do with it.”
Corbin drew his head back and hissed. Lindy’s shoulders slumped.
This is my fault. She wouldn’t be in this position if she weren’t my friend.
“It’s not your fault,” Elise stated firmly, somehow reading her mind.
“But between all the mess with the birds and then the swans, people have begun looking twice at every duck or goose they see. After you disappeared, this goose started following me around and won’t leave me alone.
It must have been kept as a pet at some point, because I swear it thinks it’s a person. ”
She heard Atlas breathe out, “Phoebe.”
“Haldrick has decided that the only reasonable explanation is that the goose is you, Lindy, and that you transformed yourself into a bird in order to hide.”
“If that’s true, why would she stay at the castle?” Atlas scoffed.
Elise sniffed and stood, brushing away Corbin’s sounds of protest as well as the dirt from her skirt. “I said it was a reasonable explanation to him. I didn’t say it actually made sense.”
A warm, heavy hand rested on her shoulder and squeezed, and Lindy subconsciously leaned back into his support. “What do you need?” he asked softly. “What can we do? You’re welcome to stay here until the curse is broken.”
She shook her head. “If I’m gone for too long, Haldrick will just take it as confirmation of guilt. Honestly, if the ridiculous goose would just transfer its affections to someone else, I think it might be enough to draw his attention elsewhere—at least for a while. Do you think you’re close?”
Lindy nodded and held up two fingers.
“Two what? Weeks?”
She shook her head.
“Days?” Elise practically melted in relief as Lindy confirmed. “I can last that long. Maybe I’ll lock the goose in the tool shed or something.”
Lindy felt the tension radiate from Atlas at the suggestion.
Or Atlas could just get her. It’s what he came here for in the first place.
She tilted her head back, trying to meet his eyes. He gave her a tight smile, doing a rather poor job of hiding the fact that he was worried about his goose. “What?”
She pointed from him to Elise, then in the direction of the castle.
“You want me to go with her?” He frowned. “But what about you?”
She waved a careless hand.
I’ll be fine. There’s just one more shirt to do, and this way, we don’t have to go back to the castle to get Phoebe. I can just change the princes back and we’ll part ways here. They can go home, and Atlas and I can head up the mountain.
She froze at the train of thought. When had she made up her mind that she was leaving with Atlas?
“Are you sure?” Atlas looked unconvinced. “Phoebe will be fine in a tool shed for a day or two.”
“I’m lost,” Elise interrupted. “Who is Phoebe?”
“Phoebe is my goose. Prince Jacques stole her from me. I came down the mountain looking for her, but I found Lindy instead.”
“Down the mountain,” Elise repeated slowly. “That’s where you live? Up at the top?”
“Yes.”
Her eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them, scrutinizing them both so closely that Lindy began to squirm. “And after you get your goose and Lindy breaks the curse, you’ll take her back with you?”
“It’s not my choice to make.” Atlas’s deep voice was soft and warm. “But I hope so.”
Elise nodded once, letting out a deep breath. “Good.” She gave Lindy a wavering smile. “She deserves someone who will look after her.”
Unable to say anything, Lindy lunged forward and wrapped Elise in a tight hug, trying to communicate through it all her thanks and affection.
Elise pulled away, sniffling, and Lindy turned around to look up at Atlas.
He took her hand, pressing a soft kiss to the tip of every blistered finger, and she was sure her heart was going to take flight and soar right out of her body.
“I’ll be back.” He looked pointedly at the flock of swans. “Keep her safe.”
Lindy nearly snorted at the idea.
I may be the key to breaking their curse, and I know Corbin and I had a…moment…earlier, but I doubt they’d go so far as to protect me from danger. That would imply that they cared about my well-being more than just as it benefitted them.
Elise bent down and whispered something to her swan prince, and then she and Atlas disappeared into the trees—a feat which seemed particularly more challenging for the giant. Once they were gone, Lindy breathed out a soundless sigh, turned around, and walked back to the nettles.
One more shirt. We’re almost there.
Knitting by moonlight was much less relaxing without the light of a fire to see by.
Lindy squinted through her tears as she tried to angle her needles to catch as much of the light from the full moon as she could.
With Atlas gone, there was neither a fire nor conversation to draw her away from her task, and after hearing Elise’s news, she wanted to finish as quickly as possible.
She paused for a moment, stretching her cramped, aching fingers and breathing deeply.
In addition to the angry red rash on her hands, some of the blisters on her fingers had popped and were bleeding, and she could only be thankful that the shirts were not actually meant to be worn as fashion accessories.
Her hands hurt, and she could only hope that the pain was enough to break the curse.
Wiping the tears from her eyes with the backs of her shaking hands, she blew out a long breath, stealing herself to finish the row of stitches.
Just one more, and then I’ll take a break to find something to eat.